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1 – 10 of 30Charlotte Waller and Aleksandra Liachenko Monteiro
The purpose of this study is to examine the effect gender has on the public perceptions of offenders with mental health issues. The authors aim to understand how offenders with…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to examine the effect gender has on the public perceptions of offenders with mental health issues. The authors aim to understand how offenders with mental illness are viewed by the public so future information and practices can be implemented to further educate on the topic of mental illness. Research has shown that mental health education can be a pivotal part of reducing risk and crime among the mentally ill population.
Design/methodology/approach
This study applies a quantitative design using vignettes. There were four scenarios, two as controls, and two experimental variables to examine how responses differed depending on gender and mental health. Twenty statements then followed each vignette and participants were asked to share how much they aligned their opinions with each statement on a five-point Likert scale. The sample was comprised of 80 participants.
Findings
The findings of this study largely support the relevant literature on the topic of gender and mental illness in offenders. Overall, the public was the least supportive of female offenders with mental illness, followed by male offenders with mental illness, then male offenders and lastly the most support was directed towards female offenders. Therefore, the present study’s initial hypotheses are also supported in that female offenders will garner a more sympathetic reaction than their male counterparts. However, if female offenders have mental health issues, they are viewed more negatively than males.
Research limitations/implications
For future replication of this study, the authors consider that a larger and more gender-balanced sample size would increase the ecological validity of the findings. Despite this, the findings of this study do fall in line with the relevant literature. Therefore, suggesting perhaps that the gender of the sample does not affect the overall outcome of the results.
Practical implications
Education regarding mental health for the public should be implemented as research has found this effective in de-stigmatising and helping to create protective factors to reduce offending. More training is needed for professionals within the criminal justice system, including police personnel, to ensure they are better equipped to consider the needs and behaviours of mentally ill individuals. The authors suggest that mental health awareness should be taught as part of the education system in the UK to help de-stigmatise and share helpful resources. The prison system in the UK needs to be able to provide better treatment programmes for inmates with mental health issues as research shows this is the most effective form of treatment at reducing recidivism.
Social implications
The social implications of this study are that it aims to understand perceptions of mental illness, gender and offending and, therefore, use the conclusions drawn to inform what is needed to improve perceptions if necessary. De-stigmatising and acknowledging mental illness can allow for better access to appropriate treatment. Facilitating reintegration back into society, and, therefore, increasing peer support which has been shown to reduce reoffending rates within the mentally ill population.
Originality/value
There are very few research studies looking at the impact of both gender and mental illness on how offenders are perceived. Most relevant research tends to either pick one or the other and therefore the present study is unique. In addition, most established research looks at the perception of a specific population. Whereas the present study has used a small but broad UK participant sample which is likely to be more generalisable. Finally, the results of this research have been able to both meet the aims of the study and accept the proposed hypotheses.
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Robyn Lee, Faye Horsley and Annette McKeown
Previous qualitative research by Horsley (2020) and Lee (2019) highlighted the importance of self-concept (SC) in understanding fire use. This study, therefore, aims to further…
Abstract
Purpose
Previous qualitative research by Horsley (2020) and Lee (2019) highlighted the importance of self-concept (SC) in understanding fire use. This study, therefore, aims to further investigate the relevance of SC in non-criminalised fire use, with a view towards informing early interventions for firesetting prevention.
Design/methodology/approach
In this preliminary study, ten participants engaging in extensive, non-criminalised fire use were interviewed about their fire-related experiences and how this relates to SC. This was analysed using techniques informed by the grounded theory.
Findings
Three core categories were identified: control, identity and self-esteem, which provide a preliminary framework for understanding how SC and non-criminalised fire use are inter-related. The core categories relate to the study aim because they are conceptualised as three elements of SC, which are strengthened through interactions with fire. The mechanisms through which the categories relate to fire use and SC are discussed.
Practical implications
Forensic implications are discussed regarding early intervention and prevention. The authors argue that knowledge of non-criminalised fire use could provide a valuable blueprint for healthy fire use and, thus, feed into treatment and intervention. Given that previous research has highlighted the importance of SC in relation to how and why people interact with fire, the authors suggest that it should be given greater emphasis in clinical work with those thought to be at risk of firesetting.
Originality/value
To date, firesetting research has focused primarily on criminalised acts, i.e. arson. This paper adopts a different approach and explores how and why people engage with fire in healthy and adaptive ways.
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Kshitiz Jangir, Vikas Sharma and Munish Gupta
Purpose: The study aims to analyse and discuss the effect of COVID-19 on businesses. The chapter discusses the various machine learning (ML) tools and techniques, which can help…
Abstract
Purpose: The study aims to analyse and discuss the effect of COVID-19 on businesses. The chapter discusses the various machine learning (ML) tools and techniques, which can help in better decision making by businesses in the present world.
Need for the Study: COVID-19 has increased the role of VUCA elements in the business environment, and there is a need to address the challenges faced by businesses in such environment. ML and artificial learning can help businesses in facing such challenges.
Methodology: The focus and approach of the chapter are in the context of using artificial intelligence (AI) and ML techniques for decision making during the COVID-19 pandemic in a VUCA business environment.
Findings: The key findings and their implications emphasise the importance of understanding and implementing AI and ML techniques in business strategies during times of crisis.
Practical Implications: The chapter’s content is in the context of using AI and ML techniques during the COVID-19 pandemic and in a VUCA business environment.
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Lisa Maria Beethoven Steene, Lisa Gaylor and Jane L. Ireland
The current review aims to focus on how risk and protective factors for self-harm in secure mental health hospitals are captured in the literature.
Abstract
Purpose
The current review aims to focus on how risk and protective factors for self-harm in secure mental health hospitals are captured in the literature.
Design/methodology/approach
Fifty-seven articles were included in a systematic review, drawn from an initial 1,119 articles, post duplicate removal. Databases included Psycinfo, Psycarticles, Psycnet, Web of Science and EBSCO host. A thematic analysis was used, which included a meta-ethnographic approach for considering qualitative papers.
Findings
There was a clear focus on risk factors, with eight identified (in order of occurrence): raised emotional reactivity and poor emotion regulation; poor mental health; traumatic experiences; personality disorder diagnosis and associated traits; increased use of outward aggression – dual harm; constraints of a secure environment and lack of control; previous self-harm and suicide attempts; and hopelessness. Protective factors featured less, resulting in only three themes emerging (in order of occurrence): positive social support and communication; positive coping skills; and hope/positive outlook.
Research limitations/implications
This includes a proposal to move focus away from “risk” factors, to incorporate “needs”, in terms of individual and environmental factors. There is also a need for more attention to focus on developing high quality research in this area.
Originality/value
The research captures an area where a synthesis of research has not been comprehensively undertaken, particularly with regards to capturing protective as well as risk factors.
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Zara et al. (2023) provide novel findings into how psychopathy may develop, showing that early life predictors of poor relationships (e.g. being unwanted before birth) are…
Abstract
Purpose
Zara et al. (2023) provide novel findings into how psychopathy may develop, showing that early life predictors of poor relationships (e.g. being unwanted before birth) are predictive of psychopathy in adulthood. The authors provide a theoretical interpretation of why psychopathy might develop based on these findings by using an adaptive perspective, suggesting that psychopathy may protect or shield individuals from poor relationships. This commentary aims to critically evaluate and extend this latter suggestion in hopes of fostering further research and clarity on the topic.
Design/methodology/approach
After presenting an overview of evolutionary perspectives, a summary and elaboration are presented of the interpretation that psychopathy may be an adaptive response that functions to protect individuals from poor relationships. Then, an additional adaptive interpretation is offered.
Findings
Psychopathy describes a collection of traits and behavior that facilitates an approach-oriented and exploitative motivational style that might suggest more than a protective function. When negative or poor relationships are experienced (e.g. being unwanted), it is suggested that psychopathy may begin to develop not just for protection (If I am not loved, I will shield myself from those around me) but to actively orient toward exploitation (If I am not loved, I will exploit those around me).
Originality/value
This commentary hopes to arouse further interest into the theoretical interpretations of why psychopathy may develop that are based on findings of how psychopathy develops. These considerations are consequential for understanding what to target in treatments that aim to meet the specific needs and motivations of individuals with psychopathic traits.
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Chowdhury Noushin Novera, Regina Connolly, Peter Wanke, Md. Azizur Rahman and Md. Abul Kalam Azad
The COVID-19 epidemic has brought attention to the variables that influence the mental health of health workers who are entrusted with nursing individuals. Despite the fact that…
Abstract
Purpose
The COVID-19 epidemic has brought attention to the variables that influence the mental health of health workers who are entrusted with nursing individuals. Despite the fact that many articles have examined the effects of social media usage on mental health, there is a lack of research synthesizing learning from this body of research. The purpose of this study is to use text mining and citation-based bibliometric analysis to conduct a detailed review of extant literature on health workers’ mental health and social networking habits.
Design/methodology/approach
This study conducts a full-text analysis of 36 articles selected on health workers' mental health and social media using text-mining techniques in R programming and a bibliometric citation analysis of 183 papers from the Scopus database in VOS viewer software. But the limitations of the methods used in this study are that the bibliometric analysis was limited to the Scopus database because the VOS viewer program did not support any other database and the text-mining approach caused the natural processing redundancy.
Findings
The bibliometric analysis reveals the thematic networks that exist in the literature of health workers’ mental health and social networking. The findings from text mining identified ten topic models, which helped to find the related papers classified in ten different groups and are provided alongside a summary of the published research and a list of the primary authors with posterior probability through Latent Dirichlet Allocation.
Originality/value
To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first hybrid review, combining text mining and bibliometric review, on health workers’ mental health where social networking plays a moderating role. This paper critically provides an overview of the impact of social networking on health workers' mental health, presents the most important and frequent topics, introduces the scientific visualization of articles published in the Scopus database and suggests further research avenues. These findings are important for academics, health practitioners and medical specialists interested in learning how to better support the mental health of health workers using social media.
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Yuho Okita, Takao Kaneko, Hiroaki Imai, Monique Nair and Kounosuke Tomori
Goal setting is a crucial aspect of client-centered practice in occupational therapy (OT) for mental health conditions. However, it remains to be seen how goal-setting has been…
Abstract
Purpose
Goal setting is a crucial aspect of client-centered practice in occupational therapy (OT) for mental health conditions. However, it remains to be seen how goal-setting has been delivered in mental health, particularly the OT process. The purpose of this scoping review was to explore the nature and extent of goal setting delivered in mental health and informed OT practice.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors followed the guidelines of Arksey and O’Malley (2005) and searched three databases using key search terms: “mental disorder,” “goal setting,” and “occupational therapy” and their synonyms.
Findings
After excluding duplicate records, the authors initially screened 883 records and resulted in 20 records in total after the screening process. Most of the identified articles used goal-setting delivered by both a health professional and a client (n = 14), and focused on people with schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder (n = 13), but three interventions were delivered by occupational therapists. Further research needs on goal-setting in mental health OT, exploring the reliability and validity of different goal-setting strategies and investigating the effectiveness of goal-setting for promoting behavior change and client engagement across various mental health conditions and settings.
Research limitations/implications
The scoping review has some limitations, such as not investigating the validity and reliability of goal-setting strategies identified, and excluding conference papers and non-English articles.
Originality/value
This scoping review presents a mapping of how goal-setting has been delivered in mental health and informed OT practice. The findings suggest limited research in OT and highlight the need for more studies to address the evidence gap in individualized client-centered OT.
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Karen Humphries, Caroline Clarke, Kate Willoughby and Jake Smithson
The purpose of this paper is to develop an understanding of the experience of secure care from the patients’ perspective.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to develop an understanding of the experience of secure care from the patients’ perspective.
Design/methodology/approach
A systematic review of qualitative literature was conducted. The data was sourced from the electronic databases: PsychINFO, CINAHL, Medline and the Web of Science Core Collection using pre-defined search terms. A total of 17 studies, conducted in various countries worldwide and covering high, medium and low secure inpatient settings, were included for review. The analysis involved integrating findings from across the literature and was guided by thematic synthesis.
Findings
A total of eight themes were generated from the data, three of which provided an understanding of the experience of forensic secure care, and the remaining five themes provided an understanding of the factors which may influence the experience of secure care.
Practical implications
Developing understanding of patient experience can lead to service improvements, potentially impacting patients’ motivation and engagement and thus reducing admission times, potential recalls and recidivism.
Originality/value
To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first systematic review to date to exclusively explore the broad topic of the patient experience of secure mental health care.
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Anna Berardi, Giovanni Galeoto, Rachele Simeon, Riccardo Bandiera, Giovanni Sellitto, Jesús Ángel Seco Calvo and Jeronimo González-Bernal
The purpose of this study was to research studies in the literature regarding the role of the occupational therapist within penitentiary facilities.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study was to research studies in the literature regarding the role of the occupational therapist within penitentiary facilities.
Design/methodology/approach
The study design is a systematic review using five different databases.
Findings
Findings can therefore ascertain the potential role of occupational therapists in penitentiary institutions because they can contribute to the rehabilitation of prisoners both inside and outside prisons with a view to their reintegration into society.
Research limitations/implications
It is necessary for clinical practice, and especially to increase the health of people within prisons, to update the occupational therapist interventions in the literature that are effective within prisons.
Practical implications
According to this study, the intervention of occupational therapists in the prison setting reduces recidivism and contributes to social and work reintegration. This has positive effects in terms of costs related to incarceration.
Originality/value
Findings can therefore ascertain the potential role of occupational therapists in penitentiary institutions because they can contribute to the rehabilitation of prisoners both inside and outside prisons with a view to their reintegration into society.
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Judith Christiane Ostermann and Steven James Watson
The purpose of this study was to investigate whether indicating victims of sexual attacks actively resisted their attacker or froze during their assault affected perceptions of…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study was to investigate whether indicating victims of sexual attacks actively resisted their attacker or froze during their assault affected perceptions of victim blame, perpetrator blame and seriousness of the crime. We also tested whether victim and perpetrator gender or participants’ rape myth endorsement moderated the outcomes.
Design/methodology/approach
This study was a cross-sectional, vignette survey study with a 2 × 2 between-participants experimental design. Participants read a mock police report describing an alleged rape with a female or male victim who either resisted or froze, while perpetrator gender was adjusted heteronormatively.
Findings
Freezing and male victims were blamed more than resisting and female victims. Perpetrators were blamed more when the victim resisted, but male and female perpetrators were blamed equally. Seriousness of the crime was higher for male perpetrators and when the victim resisted. Female, but not male, rape myth acceptance moderated the relationship between victim behaviour and outcome variables.
Originality/value
This study highlights the influence of expectations about victim behaviour on perceptions of rape victims and the pervasive influence of rape myths when evaluating female rape victims. The data is drawn from the German border region of the Netherlands, which is an especially valuable population given the evolving legal definitions of rape in both countries.
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